Album Reviews

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    Tenebrous – Opus Magnum (2009)

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    Featuring Armanen of Kult ov Azazel on guitars and vocals, and VJS (Kult ov Azazel, Nightbringer,etc) on bass and drums, today we have Tenebrous and their soul crushing release “Opus Magnum”. Filled with hate and destruction, the 10 tracks presented in this release feature a hectic and diabolical Black Metal sound with a USBM edge to it.

    Not for the weak of mind and soul, “Opus Magnum” delivers its first aural assault with “What Death Has Fallen”. In this very hectic and destructive song, we can immediately hear the band’s pure aggression channeled through shrieks of pain, distorted guitars and bestial drumming. This is in fact the way most of the album goes with a few very interesting changes in the pace of some songs. “Wallachia Weywoden” is a clear example of some nice slow-downs with brutal sections galore.

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    What Mad Universe – A Cosmic Chapter with Gaia (2010)

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    Featuring a very ethereal and fresh sound, today we have What Mad Universe, a two man band from France that plays a particular combination of Atmospheric Rock with Sludge and Post-Rock elements. For over 50 minutes we are treated with very enchanting compositions that will transport the listener to unknown realms of consciousness.

    With a hefty mix of distorted guitars, atmospheric elements, some electronic ones, and the use of a banjo (Deliverance, anybody?), “A Cosmic Chapter with Gaia” nicely stands aside from the rest of atmospheric releases due to the intricacy and effectiveness of its songs. The masterminds behind this project PEP and RK do a great job in executing all these elements to perfection in order to create very engaging and interesting tracks.

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    Incursus – Eternal Funeral Trance (2009)

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    Deliver nine blows of pure rawness, today we have Incursus and their very devastating (and well crafted) debut full-length release “Eternal Funeral Trance”. Featuring VJS of Kult ov Azazel, Nightbringer, etc., Incursus has a great sound for such a ‘young’ band, but with his pedigree it is something to be fully expected. The vocalist Horidus (ex-Demoncy and ex-Legions of Astaroth) it is also a fundamental part for this release to work the way it does due to his hellish shrieks.

    Opening with a very cool intro, the album fully explodes with “A Ravenous Despair”. In this track the band delivers waves of crushing riffs and blasting drums, all of these perfectly complemented by Horidus vocals. With the true Black Metal sound behind them, Incursus delivers a top notch opening track that will be greatly appreciated by all fans of the genre. In the following aural assaults “When Death Enthrones Our Darkness”, “Phantasmagoria” and “Evil Comes Forth”, the band has a similar feeling to other greats of the genre like Deathspell Omega, Katharsis, Sargeist, etc.

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    Lord Foul – Killing Raping Burning / The Devil’s Advocate (2009)

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    Released in 2009, “Killing Raping Burning / The Devil’s Advocate” marks the now defunct Lord Foul’s last release. Featuring the band’s only two demos we can hear some of their strengths and a lot of their weaknesses, which probably led to their demise. Fan of raw and low-fi Black Metal will surely get a kick out of this release, but does not feature enough elements to really grab your attention for the whole 20 minutes it lasts.

    In the first ‘half’ of the album we have the six real songs of the “Killing, Raping Burning” demo. In these songs we have a few spoken/movie section intros that remind us of the good old Mortician stuff. The songs however, are very random in nature. The drums are going fast, the distorted guitars are pretty odd and repetitive and the vocals just seem to not lead anywhere. We can’t really say that we found much here other than a ‘kvlt’ sound with no substance.

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    Lyan / Blien Vesne (split) - Esperar Eternity (2011)

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    With the current popularity of Post-Rock and its variations, we have recently received tons of album submissions of this genre but there are only handfuls that are very interesting and pleasant to listen to. “Esperar Eternity” is one of those select few albums that we can say are pretty solid and should be purchased. Featuring five tracks of Ambient Post-Rock from Lyan and four tracks from Blien Vesne (post-rock), this release has a very high atmospheric content that should be heard.

    Opening the release with the Ambient sounds of “Toi Cho Doi”, we are treated to beautiful landscapes for melancholy. This song nicely creates an atmosphere of peace that will calm even the most hyper person in the world. The magic continues with “Cotton House”, where there are some electronic-like elements and ethereal vocals added to the mix. “Childhood’s Seasons” follows the same path but with a deeper atmosphere, a very magical song (and our favorite from the Lyan side of things).

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Beyond the Labyrinth – Chapter III – Stories (2011)

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    Hailing from Belgium, today we have a very solid Heavy Metal band with the name of “Beyond the Labyrinth”. While this band might not be familiar to a lot of people, they have been around the scene since 1996 and you can tell by the quality of music presented in the 12 tracks in “Chapter III – Stories”. Being the band’s third full-length release, “Chapter II – Stories” features tracks that range from power ballads, hard rocking anthems and even some mellow Heavy/Progressive Metal pieces.

    Opening with “The Girl with the X-Ray Eyes”, the band quickly sets the pace for this release by crafting a very catchy and emotional song. This song reminds us of soundtrack songs for 90’s movies. With a bit of a more current sound, “Where Kindred Spirits Meet” has a nice Progressive/Heavy Metal feel to it and the keyboards sound very good in this song. The first power ballad comes under the name of “Oceans Apart”, in this song the guitar work is quite nice and the vocal performance of Jo De Boeck is very emotional. The drumming sounds a bit funky, but the song it-self is very good.

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    Mystons – 3 (2011)

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    Almost one year since the release of the very solid “Alkaem”, Mystons returns with another nine hard-hitting songs that quickly show that their last album’s success was no fluke and they mean serious business. Dropping one band member, Mystons delivers a very powerful album that feels a bit more consolidated than the first one, and is full of catchy riffs and appealing vocals.

    Funneling a White Stripes vibe, the album opens with “Mammoth” and “Mourning Sky”, the second song in particular seems to have a very familiar riff that will surely be quickly identified by the listeners. In this two songs you can hear the traditional Mystons sound, but with a bit more of direction. The album’s catchiness continues and with “CrusHer”, we find a very hard-rocking song that immediately sticks in your head.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Chthonic – Takasago Army (2011)

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    The Taiwanese Melodic/Symphonic Black Metaliers of Chthonic have been around for over 15 years and with every new album they have been improving their music by huge leaps. “Takasago Army” marks the band’s latest release and it’s probably their strongest one to date. Having released their last two albums on Spinefarm records, the band has been taking advantage of better production values to deliver their crushing music to the masses.

    While there are heaps of Symphonic Black Metal bands, there are only very few that can rock out the Erhu (traditional two-stringed instrument, similar to a violin) and deliver punishing tunes with it. The similarities to bands like Cradle of Filth (vocals and symphonic elements) are evident, but this extra traditional element adds that extra originality that bands need these days to be distinguished from the rest.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Leprous – Bilateral (2011)

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    Having been introduced to Leprous because they are the ‘live band’ of ex-Emperor Ihsahn’s solo project, the band never ceases to amaze me with their very intricate and well crafted release. “Bilateral” marks the band’s latest and third release and it is very impressive, good enough to be the best Progressive Metal album of 2011.

    Featuring ten expertly composed songs, the band draws influences from 70’s prog and delivers a very dynamic and multi-textured album that will impress any prog listener. Particularly the synth and guitars create a very pleasant atmosphere that eases the listener through each track. The soaring vocals of Einar Solberg mixed with the backing ones create a multi-leveled attack that is as effective as any of the big-name bands of the genre.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Dystrophic – Dystrophic (2010)

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    Delivering five crushing blows of chaotic Technical Death Metal with Grindcore elements, today we have Dystrophic and their self-titled debut EP. For a new band, the members behind Dystrophic are pretty good at the trade and create very brutal and technical songs that will make your speakers bleed.

    Starting with the traditional intro crap, the band fully explodes to full pace with “Total Existence Failure”. The drumming is very well crafted and keeps the pace of this song super hectic and brutal. The guitar riffing is pretty decent and some parts are blazing fast making it very interesting to listen. On “Withering at the Roots” the band kicks-off with a more traditional DM approach and suddenly the pace gets insane.

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